Monthly Archives: December 2014

I hope everyone had a wonderful holiday! I had too much time off and with help from my best friend, came up with the following descriptions of Reindeer as if they were a runner stereotype. So take a break from the sugar, the nog, the cider and enjoy a laugh.

Dasher– The runner who sprints past you huffing/puffing, then 50 meters ahead is keeled over and sounds like they’re about to die. You pass them, comfortably, while enjoying the beautiful day.. then they hurdle past again until they can no longer breathe, halt to a complete stop and you toy with the idea of educating this person on interval training and/or RPE (rate of perceived exertion).

Prancer– The dainty runner. This can be a girl or a boy (trust me, this is what prompted this entire blog idea). Anywho, a person who runs on what appears to be their tiptoes, while ever so daintily keeping their arms near their sides…They have never mastered the 90 degree, hip to nip arm swings…nor do they want to.

Vixen– This is the female runner who spent $300 on a head to toe matching Nike ensemble, spent 30 minutes perfecting a slick pony tail, and all morning on her makeup. Don’t worry, her makeup and hair will remain in tact since she will only “jog” for about 20 minutes then take an Instagram selfie and #nofilter it.

Can someone tell Ms Kerr she needs a real sports bra if she plans on going further than the end of the street? (source)

Comet– The crop duster. Yep I said it. The gassy runner you’re stuck behind and can’t seem to get around. Any direction you move the fart smell finds you. But how? I’M OUTSIDE!?

Cupid– The runner who goes out to hit on people. (Please tell me i’m not the only one who’s experienced this?) “Oh Hey! Don’t I know you?”, “How far you going today?”, “You’ve been pacing me the last couple miles” <—-creeeeepy!

(source)

Donner– I’ve described this one in the past, so anytime I get an excuse to use my hand drawn picture i will. This runner dons every piece of running equipment they own.

Blitzen– The huge body builder/linebacker dude that’s out running. These are the guys/girls that I see during marathons and am completely shocked they can kill it. Also reminds me that runners come in every shape and size.

Sunday’s long run was unexpectedly incredible. I went into it feeling like I’d die out around mile 6, just because I’ve been doing much shorter distances lately and because I waited until the last possible minute to actually get outside and run (like 3:30ish). Since I figured it was gonna be a rough one I turned my Garmin on, hid it under my sweater and listened to my body to pace me for the day.

Ohio Sunrise

Surprisingly I kept a really even pace. I focused on my breath, my footfall, the turnover– picking up my feet quickly instead of heel striking– basically all the little things CrossFit Endurance has been drilling into my head. The two lights I stopped at, i checked out the Garmin juuuuust to see where my pace was. Each time my watch read 8:22. I’ll take it. I laughed that the average pace never changed, but knew this was the easy pace my body wanted for the given day. I chose to respect it, enjoy the outside and fall into Jack White’s album, Lazaretto.

Mile 6 came and went. I figured I’d get tired soon, I always get tired near the end. Who wouldn’t? Yet again to my surprise, I didn’t tire. The cold got to me a bit, but the running was fantastic. Every uphill wasn’t a challenge, just a different footfall, arm swing, and breathing pattern. Every curve on the trail was a chance to practice tangents. Each person in front of me was a target to push just a little harder, to pass.

It was just a good run. Nothing special except I was mentally alert, and aware of my body for a full 10 miles. I almost always fall in and out of body consciousness while running. Sunday I was present in the best way possible. I’m a runner and I’m ready for new things to happen in 2015.

And even though my mile splits ranged from 8:00-8:35, my average ended up a solid 8:22. Haha.

How is it Thursday already! I’ve been meaning to blog but shopping for myself got in the way. Also, i’ve been meaning to Christmas shop for other people, but shopping for myself got in the way. Seems like I end up buying gifts like this— one for you, one for me hehee, I can’t help myself! Some of the Cyber Monday deals were way too awesome to pass up!

I bought a 4-pack (but shoulda bought more packs) of Nuun, my favorite training drink of choice–Also, got the email that I’m now a Nuunbassador for their company. Congrats to all the other bloggers out that are now part of the Nuun family :).

I’ve wanted to try Pro Compression tights for the longest time and with a discount code and free shipping, they now have a fine home on my rear end. Speaking of, they have a high waist band which is nice so you don’t get the muffin top and they’re nice and thick–no undie lines or anything else showing through!

Then I got one two new pairs of shoes. I needed to replace my favorite New Balance Minimus with a new pair for work. And I also wanted to give New Balance a go with a pair of running shoes.

4mm left, zero drop right

The running shoes I bought are Minimus WR10GY. They are still a 4mm drop (what i’m used to), just a lot less shoe than normal. I’m starting to incorporate barefoot running & lots of new running drills into a weekly routine so it seems only natural to get a shoe with less cushion. I’ve been walking/standing/strength training in zero drop shoes all year and I can’t tell you enough how different (in a good way) it feels to lift or squat in shoes where your heel is level with your forefoot. And bonus: my form has improved.

Seeing these positive changes is making me want to run in zero drop. I used to have arch pain constantly–I thought my high arches needed more cushion. Turns out I needed less, a lot less. The New Balance Minimus have literally zeroed out any foot pain i’ve had standing in shoes all day.

and they’re so pretty too!

I’ve also noticed after barefoot drills my right plantar fascia gets tight and I have to work it out a good deal for it to feel better. This could have been a much worse problem had I not tried barefoot running. <—But Cori, what if barefoot running is making your fascia tight, why don’t you just stop—> Because, made-up-person-i’m-blog-talking-to, my tight fascia probably has been a problem that was hidden with well cushioned shoes that absorb and hide high impact shock. All issues I’ve had have been on my right side (ankle, shin, soleus, & hip). Could the root of all these problems be caused by tight connective tissue along the bottom of my foot? Perhaps. I’m hoping that incorporating running drills and changing training plans will lead me to working out kinks & getting into a healthy racing year and one step closer to becoming an Unbreakable Runner.

Also, just as important as these running discoveries: Snicker Doodle Muddy Buddies. They are at Target right now. Buy them, buy them now.

Just be sure to buy them with friends to share with. There are 11 servings in this bag. I ate the entire thing in 2 sittings. Eeek.

Saturday I woke up way too early to run a fun 5k. –Just a sidenote after years of racing, opt for the night races if you aren’t running for time. It’s WAAAAYYY more fun & relaxing, plus running in the dark automatically makes you feel like a fast runner.

My roommate found the Ugly Sweater Run which stood out from a lot of holiday 5ks for the simple fact they give you a beer at the end. It’s not often you get alcohol after a 5k, so i was on board. That sounds worse than it should, I didn’t do the 5k just for a beer.. jeez… the hats are really what sold me. …also any race that offers free pics is awesome cause they basically blog for me;)

me and Leslie and her pup Tessa!

The race itself was not as jolly/amazing/unique as the website claimed. There was a few inflatable reindeer about a mile in, the water station in the middle of the race was disorganized and there was a weird wet foam machine at the finish, i’m guessing it was “snow”— However I thought for the free hat (even though I heard people saying it was the same as last years) the free can of beer and the proceeds benefitting Save the Children, it was fun! The course was actually pretty too with a loop along the harbor.

Ive done a fair share of fun Five Kays over the last few years and all I can say is if you havent already – do one. Not everyone should run a marathon, but everyone can run/walk a 5k. These are a great way to fit in a workout, encourage a friend or family member who wouldn’t normally workout or run. It’s a lot of smiles and laughs, such a fun way to start the weekend 🙂

love this candid

Now i’m off to the gym for another CrossFit Endurance workout. Wish me luck this weekend when I try to do all my Christmas shopping.. i haven’t started at all

Oops–almost forgot the most important part.. After the 5k I ate eggs/french fries and for the first time ever I had an oyster. Pretty much what i expected. They taste like salty boogers. I’ll stick with mussels thank you!

I bought a new band for my Garmin. The lime green color was looking really dirty after 2 years of sweating in it. So I bought the band for the newer models. The forerunner 15 straps fit the forerunner10 (in size Small for women!), so I had a lot more options 🙂 I’m sure all of you are just as fascinated as I was. haha

To work on better running mechanics and start a new approach to training this year (i’m already in 2015-so “this year” means the new year), I’ve been reading Unbreakable Runner. This is a CrossFit Endurance training program (not the body building side of CrossFit) which will supposedly help with running mechanics, fixing and preventing those lingering injuries due to muscle imbalances and instead of race “peaking” only a couple times a year, this program says it will keep you at 95% all year long on a lower mileage program. Which means you can race more often, run less miles, and recover faster.

My favorite aspect of this book is that it isn’t trying to disregard the high mileage traditional running plans (which every single runner follows or has followed). It’s actually offering an alternative for those runners that get injured often and those who want to run for a lifetime.

Understandably this sounds too good to be true. I’m only 50 pages and a few CFE workouts in and I’m already a believer. I’ve never been able to run more than 40 mile weeks without getting injured so to put this even further to the test, I will be following their 5k and half marathon plans once I choose races. And lucky for you, i’ll probably be talking non-stop about this program 🙂 2015 I’m coming for ya!

I’ve never once set foot out the door on Thanksgiving. Never laced up, never turkey trotted and never worked off my pumpkin pie before I ate it. But I needed it this year. I like running in different locations, so just getting out on the Ohio roads felt good, even if it was cold and snowing in my face hah.

It’s hard to see in the pic, but those rolling hills got me! I gained over 400ft of elevation in 4 miles. I was actually at 1,000 ft elevation…totally different from my sea level legs. I wasn’t really anticipating a hill repeat effort, but hey it’s the first in my off season.

At least there was a hot shower, coffee and food to eat shortly after… oh this must be why you guys run on Thanksgiving morning haha.

Oh and I don’t have any pictures of the pumpkin pie because I ate it. ALL of it. Then of course there were way too many family pictures being taken!

This is my cousin Brooke, me, Grandma Maley, & my niece Peyton:

Also—Ohio is hilarious. I miss the Midwest so much. Where are you ever going to find solid hunks of chocolate for sale at the grocery store like this?

Peyton ❤

Or this…can you spot it?

Or the best of all.. someone that caters to your alcohol purchasing needs? On register ONE?

I feel like I should have bought the Ohio shirt, walked around with a hunk of chocolate in one hand and a 12 pack of beer in the other… I’m guessing that’s what Ohio wanted me to do.